5 Traits the Most Successful Tech Teams Share (According to Google)

If that team doesn’t work well together it will affect business performance, poor organisation, missed deadlines, high employee turnover rates and more problems.

We constantly focus on what makes a great tech leader but what about a great team?

Past research carried out by Google (on their own employees) has shown that team dynamics is more important than the individual talent that helps makes the team.

It’s not about who is on the team (individual talent) but how the team interacts with one another, structure their work and view their contributions.

Google identified that their most successful teams shared these 5 dynamics:

1.They establish psychological safety

Can your employees take risks within their team without feeling insecure?

According to Google, psychological safety is the most important dynamic of the five.

If an employee feels safe within their team they will feel more confident asking questions and making suggestions.

This openness encourages creativity, which in turn will solve problems faster and bring in more revenue.

2. They can depend on each other at all times

Can your team count on each other to deliver high quality work on time?

Google defines this as, “Team members get things done on time and meet Google’s high bar of excellence.”

3.They have structure, clarity and an understanding

Are goals, performance and execution plans clear for the whole team?

Micromanaging doesn’t work in today’s world (did it ever truly work?!). Team Managers need to empower their staff and this means giving trust and transparency.

Start building trust and transparency by agreeing roles, plans and goals on a team and individual basis.

4. They all have meaning to their work

Are your employees working on something that is personally important to them?

The roles, plans and goals discussed in dynamic three need to resonate with all of your team members.

If your employee doesn’t fully ‘buy in’ they will not work to their full potential and eventually they will zone out and leave.

Make sure when agreeing roles, plans and goals to get full ‘buy in’ from each member.

5. They all understand and appreciate the impact of their work

Do your team members fundamentally believe in the work they’re doing?

Google’s former SVP of People Operations said that Managers need to clarify their teams purpose and how it makes a tangible impact.

If you can yes to each dynamic question then you’ve probably got a high performing team on your hands.

If it doesn’t? Make sure you build a strong foundation in psychological safety and then build on the other dynamics.

We work with high growth gaming studios to ensure they hire the best staff for their companies and their environments. We work with you, on site, as part of your team. We’ve helped to build teams for Supercell, Klarna, Farmdrop and more. If you’d like help building your team, get in touch here .